Every Good Friend was Once a Stranger
by two authors
Summary: {CATS fanfiction} Action! Adventure! Unexpected Twists! ...nope, none of that here. Just the story of two Jellicle Queen strays looking for a home in the Jellicle Junkyard. Romance and humour galore (in later chapters ; (Rating is subject to change.)
1. The Arrival

**(A/N: HAHAHAHAHA! FINALLY! After the long wait, your beloved Alexiel has returned…WITH A FANFICTION!**

**…**

**Whoa…sorry, little sugar high there. Anyway, it's been a long while since I've submitted anything…the last being the Rurouni Kenshin one. Ah, it's been such a long while since I've tried my hand at writing. Well, here we go.**

**…DON'T FEAR THE REAPER!**

**A few minor notes:**

**"Blah" – Speech  
'Blah' – Thought  
(Blah) – Author Notes They start with "A/N:"**

**Enjoy! )**

Prologue

As humans, we are believed to be the most advanced creatures on this planet, excelling in the fields of science, literature, history, song, dance, and story-telling. Oh, but woe to the man who's not heard of a Jellicle cat.

What's that? You say _you've _never heard of the Jellicle cats? Well, it's lucky you came here! This story about those very same creatures who best humans in every song and dance ever to be performed.

Jellicle cats come in all different shapes and sizes. To the human eye, they look like any ordinary stray or pet. Every so often, one Jellicle cat is chosen to go to the 'Heavy Side Layer' and be reborn into a much happier life. The process of choosing that one special cat is the event of the Jellicle Ball, where the most talented of the Jellicle Toms and Queens tell stories of Jellicle lore and legend. The last cat to be chosen was an old queen, or female Jellicle (the males are referred to as 'Toms'). Her name was Grizabella the Glamour Cat. She was so very sad, until Old Deuteronomy, the leader of the Jellicle tribe, chose her for a better life.

Ah, but this isn't the story you're about to read, dear humans. This is the story of the Rum Tum Tugger and the young stray who stole his heart. Her name was Sahara, the small queen who had no title, and her sister was Salome, the Harlequin Cat…

It had been a long while since Grizabella the Glamour Cat was sent to the Heavy Side Layer. Life after that was pretty normal for the Jellicles, full of its own comings and goings. Kittens were born and given special names and various titles. Every so often, the 'Hidden Paw' Macavity would make an unwanted appearance to the Jellicle tribe. And sometimes, strays would become part of the large Jellicle family.

Sahara and Salome where two of those strays, sisters of the same littler and age, though Sahara was smaller (she was the runt of the litter). Sahara's fur was a strange sort. The dark patches of fur on her arms and most of her legs spread like fire and slithered about her like snakes while her front was mostly white with a brownish tinge. Her eyes were dark and often compared to black diamonds. Her short mane was tangled and slightly frayed, but it only added to her wild charm. She was tough and didn't like to be called small, for it wasn't her fault that she was that way! But nevertheless, she had an innocent face and a kind disposition, though she was naturally suspicious of strangers and humans.

Her sister, Salome, was known as the 'Harlequin Cat', and she certainly lived up to her title. Her eyes were a smoky sort of blue and her light red and brown fur speckled her tall frame like checkers, spreading over her back and leaving her chest and stomach white, like a Harlequin jester. And what a clown she was! Her sweet smile and ability to make jokes at the drop of a hat made her the center of attention at large gatherings, however rare they were.

The two sisters had been on their own for quite a long while, after they had come of age and left their parents, Toselinuvus and Fauvelinee.

Sahara had heard of the famous Jellicle Ball in a land far away and she was determined to attend. After long travels across the skid rows of every metropolis and countless encounters with fierce Pollicle Dogs, they arrived upon a large, somewhat familiar junkyard…

And so…the story of Sahara, the Queen of no title and the Harlequin Cat Salome begins…

The two queens entered the junkyard cautiously, slinking about and exploring. The moon was a waning crescent in the slightly clouded sky. There seemed to be no one about at the moment.

"Salome, are you positive this is where that old tom said to go…?" asked the smaller queen Sahara.

"Well, sure I am! As sure as I am honest," replied Salome as she hopped onto a rusty old oven and looked about for any other signs of life. Sahara slunk to a large tire, limping just so slightly. "But…it's so…," she began, and then paused, taking a moment to think.

"Well…we've seen worse junkyards, I suppose…," she commented as she climbed onto the tire. Once there, she began carefully grooming her left forepaw which was the cause of her limp.

Salome cast a glance at her sister and saw her tending to her wound. "Does your paw still hurt, Sahara?" she inquired. Sahara replied with a small smile and a nonchalant shrug of her slight shoulders.

"Only a little…if I stay off of it, it should be fine." As she continued to nurse her paw, she remembered how she came to receive such an injury. It was a few days ago, and the both of them were rooting through a turned-over garbage bin to find a few scraps of food. It wasn't long before a haggard old man came out shouting at them. When they didn't retreat right away, the old human threw a golf shoe in their direction to scare them off. Salome escaped without a scratch, while poor Sahara's paw was torn by the sharp prongs on the bottom of the shoe.

The small queen sighed a little as her sister hopped down from the oven. "It's very quiet here…," she remarked, almost to herself. Sahara climbed off of the tire and joined her sister in the clear area of the yard. Her ears sunk a little as a thought struck her.

"…well…maybe this isn't the right place after all…," she commented sadly. Salome looked at her sister, smiling kindly.

"Hey! When have I ever been wrong?" she said while nudging Sahara's shoulder with her forehead. After a millisecond of thought, Salome quickly added, "…wait. Don't answer that."

This provoked a small fit of laughter from Sahara. She nudged the Harlequin Cat back. "You silly thing…," she said with a cheerful tone. Salome smiled, seeing that her effort to cheer her sister had worked flawlessly.

The cheer was ended when a few pieces of garbage unexpectedly fell from a waste bin at their left. Sahara was immediately on her heels, her back arching slightly as she hissed softly. She was a feisty young queen, for she had learned to always be on guard when in unfamiliar surroundings. Salome, however, was naturally calmer than her sister, but she was on guard as well, crouched as her arms spread out wide as she prepared herself should anything attack them.

To the surprise of both, the only thing to reveal itself from behind the can was a sweet, pure white face framed by soft black fur.

Sahara relaxed slightly. 'Oh good…,' she thought to herself, '…not a pollicle dog.' Salome relaxed as well, seeing the face belonged to a Jellicle Tom.

The rest of him emerged from behind the garbage bin. He was mostly black, excluding his face, chest, and three of his four forelimbs, which were all white. "Hello," he called politely with a sweet, kind voice. "Who are you two? I don't think I've met you before…" he added as he stepped out. His movements where incredibly graceful and flowing as he closed most of the distance between himself and the two queens.

Salome was the first to speak. "Oh, hello," she replied cheerfully. "My name is Salome, and this here is my sister, Sahara," she said while gesturing to herself and her still crouching sister. Sahara no longer saw any danger and stood next to her taller sister.

"And who are you?" Sahara inquired in a friendly manner. The handsome tom smiled and gave the both of them a grand bow, replying, "Mistoffelees, the Conjuring Cat, at your service. It's nice to meet you both." He lifted his head and smiled sweetly at the queens, to which Salome returned an equally cheerful grin. Sahara, however, was preoccupied with the question on her mind.

"We've been looking for the setting of the Jellicle Ball…is this where it's held, Mistoffelees?" she asked hopefully.

"Yes, this is the right place," said a strong voice to their right. All three Jellicles in the clearing of the yard turn their heads towards the voice. Sitting now on the large tire was a tall, silver and black tom, who looked to be very strong indeed. Salome smiled proudly and whispered to Sahara, "See? Didn't I tell you this was the place?"

Sahara nodded a little, smirking, before turning to the silver tom. "Who are you? I'm-"

"Sahara, right? And that's Salome." The silver tom interjected with a smile. "I heard. My name is Munkustrap. I'm the protector of the tribe that lives here."

"And going back to your question, Sahara," Mistoffelees chipped in, "I'm afraid the ball isn't going to be held for quite some time." The two sisters looked at eachother for a moment, then back at the Conjuring Cat. Sahara's ears lowered just a little bit. The Harlequin Cat noticed her sister's slight dismay and turned to Munkustrap, whom to her seemed to be a cat of authority.

"Um...Sir…," she began. "We, that is, my sister and I...we really have nowhere else to go. Might we be allowed to stay here, until the ball?" Munkustrap considered for a moment, and then smiled kindly. Well, we aren't ones to turn those without a home away…" he paused again, thinking. "However…we don't really know that much about you…"

Sahara was quick to respond. She didn't want to lose her only chance at attending the ball! "We're just a couple of strays…we've been that way since the day we were named," she said.

Mistoffelees smiled and looked up to Munkustrap. He knew he was only assuring the safety of the tribe, but the Conjuring Cat had already come to like these two new queens. "Well, I don't see any harm in letting them stay, Munkustrap! Let's give them a chance, hm? They've both very honest faces," he added with a smile. Munkustrap smiled and nodded in agreement. "Like I said, we aren't ones to turn away those without a home."

At that moment, Sahara's eyes lit up. This was exactly what she had waited for all her life! She could barely contain her elation! "Oh, thank you! Thank you so much! You have no idea what this means to us!"

Salome was equally pleased. And just to assure the older tom, she exclaimed, "We won't be any trouble, we promise!" Sahara excitedly agreed. "Yes!" she added happily, "We won't get in anybody's way or cause any trouble! Cross our hearts and hope to be eaten by a pollicle!" And at that, both sisters drew an 'X' over their chests with their forepaws simultaneously.

The toms laughed heartily and Munkustrap stood, his arms spread in a welcoming gesture. "Then on behalf of the Jellicle tribe, I welcome you." "And we're glad to have you with us!" Mistoffelees added with a charming smile.

After a few moments of celebration between the two sisters, Salome looked around a little. "So!" she inquired, "Where exactly is everybody?" Sahara looked about as well as she hopped into an old cereal box, hobbling a little due to her injured paw.

As if to answer Salome's question, a pure white queen peeked out from behind the old Ford. She was quite shy, as Sahara and Salome could tell. Mistoffelees looked over and smiled instantly.

"Victoria, there you are! I was looking for you…," he said as he extended a paw towards her. The white queen he called Victoria elegantly crossed to him, stretching her own paw out and touching his. Mistoffelees then turned to the sisters and introduced her formally. "My sister, Victoria," he said as the small white queen smiled shyly and gently made contact with Salome's paw. Salome smiled and bowed her head, "Nice to meet you." Mistoffelees told Victoria the names of the two new queens and she happily greeted each when she was told that they were going to live there with the tribe.

After a time, the two sisters found a large shoebox to stay in for the night. Salome was tuckered out and she curled up in a warm corner. Sahara remained awake, nursing her paw as she thought of the day's events…

"So what do you think?" Salome asked her sister before she gave into her fatigue. Sahara was snapped out of her thoughts. "Hm? About what?" she asked back.

"This. Can this be home?"

Sahara thought for a moment, and then crawled over to sit beside her tired sister. She nuzzled her ear a bit, and then looked up at the crescent moon above them.

"…it's…different than what I had pictured…," she admitted, speaking softly and whimsically. "But…at least there are others here who like and accept us…"

"Yes…," Salome yawned and finally gave into the land of dreams that called to her. Sahara curled up beside her sister and she too fell into a lighter slumber, at peace for the fist time in a long while…

**(WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! First chapter done! Well, I really hope you like it! I haven't written anything in awhile, so let me know how I'm doing! Ta!)**


	2. The Kitten Quartet And One Curious Cat

**(A/N: WELL THEN! I'm gonna keep writing because I love it and I hope you crazy CATS fans will leave a few lovely reviews. Kay? KAY! NOW ON TO THE NEXT CHAPTER!**

**Once again:  
"Blah" - Speech  
'Blah' – Thought**

**(Blah) - Author)**

Just as Sahara was drifting to sleep, her sharp ears picked up the lovely sound of a kitten's laughter. Her eyes opened and she looked about for a second. With a shrug of her shoulders, she dismissed it as a part of her dreams. She closed her eyes once again and started to doze off.

'Must have been the wind…,' she thought offhandedly. And no sooner had she thought this that another distant giggle reached her ears. She sat up this time as the laughter continued, with more sweet young voices joining the delightful chorus.

'Now what…?' Sahara looked to Salome and saw that the Harlequin Cat hadn't woken from her slumber. The small Queen looked out of the shoe box, then back at Salome.

'…I'll only be gone a few minutes…Salome won't mind,' she decided. She proceeded to climb out of the box and find her way towards the sound of joyous and girlish laughter. Sahara slunk through trash cans and old furniture, pausing a few times to lick her damaged paw. Soon enough, she came upon a small clearing in the junkyard where four small kittens where laughing and playing. Sahara hid in the shadows, unseen as her nose twitched a little. Suddenly, the kittens' attention was focused on something to their left, and almost immediately started to playfully fight each other for a seat closer to the object of their attention.

"Etcetera! Move over!" one kitten squealed as she batted her friend's ear. Sahara's head tilted to the side as a puzzled expression crossed her face. 'I wonder what all the fuss is about…,' she pondered.

"Hey, I picked this spot first!" the second kitten called Etcetera protested.

"Nuh-uh!" claimed the first.

"Yeah-HUH!" exclaimed Etcetera.

"Hey, I can't see either!" cried a third as she pounced both of the battling kittens, laughing.

"Oh, move over! Move over!" said the fourth and smallest of the quartet. Sahara nearly laughed aloud as they competed for the space on the ground and wondered what was so important that they were pouncing each other to be closer?

"Ack!"

"Hahah!"

"Hey, no fair!"

"Whoa-! Hey, no pushing!"

Sahara watched in mild amusement as the four kittens pounced and batted at each other. She sniffed a bit. But to her misfortune, a bit of dust tickled her nose and she nearly sneezed! "Ah…ah…!"

The kittens stopped and the smallest looked about. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what, Jemima?" Etcetera asked. The first and third looked around.

"I didn't hear anything…"

"Me neither!"

Sahara silently let out a relieved breath. She didn't want to be seen quite yet. But her momentary peace was broken when the kitten dubbed 'Etcetera' squealed excitedly.

"Look! Here he comes!"

'…'He'…? Who's 'He'…?' Sahara wondered. She quickly became aware of the tall tom that had been making his way towards the kittens this whole time. When she caught sight of him, she immediately found him to be an impossibly attractive male. The majority of his pelt was black, with leopard patterns at the ends of his limbs. He had a large, almost lion-like mane, and a black and silver studded belt hung about his waist. As soon as he reached the gaggle of kittens, he flashed an incredibly charming grin. "Hello, ladies…"

The kittens sighed and giggled at his greeting.

Sahara blinked and stared for a few moments as the slender tom tickled little Jemima behind the ear (which provoked a giggle and sweet smile from her), then sniffed a little as her nose scrunched up. "Ah…ah-choo!" she sneezed one of those petit sneezes, and the kitten who had heard her before looked up again as Etcetera jumped in surprise.

"You see! I told you I heard something!" Jemima cried. The tom, who had already started towards the sound of the sneeze, was closing in on Sahara. She moved back slightly, hiding underneath an opened newspaper, wincing as she crawled on her injury.

But the tom had already found her. He knelt down and lifted the paper with a somewhat detached look…that is, until he saw that it was a pretty young queen who was hiding, and at that time his expression changed into another dashing grin. The kittens crawled over and looked at her in mild curiosity. The tom continued to smile as he removed the paper that concealed Sahara. "Well, hello there, little lady," he remarked. This caused Sahara to display a frown on her face. She sat up and lifted her paw off the ground (so it wouldn't bother her as much).

"I am NOT little…!"She protested as she stared at the tom. She was quite sensitive about her size (as previously mentioned). The lithe tom put up his hands in mock defense as he still grinned in a Cheshire-like manner. "Well, of course not. I don't think I've seen you around here…," his already wide smile turned into one of pure and simple suavity, "And I never forget a pretty face."

Sahara blinked, then shook her head and stood up, dusting off her forearm a bit. "My name is Sahara." she said with a slight bow of her head. "I just got here with my sister."

"Oh, you're the ones Vicky was talking about!" Etcetera said. Sahara cast a glance in her direction. "Vick-…oh, you mean Victoria!"

"Uh-huh! My name's Etcetera," she giggled.

"I'm Jemima!"

"And I'm Electra!"

"My name's Arachne!" cried the small black and grey kit. **(A/N: A new Kitten I made up to take Victoria's place in the posse!)**

The tom grinned once again and bowed in a suave, cool and rock-star type way, announcing, "And I'm The Rum Tum Tugger!"

Sahara tilted her head. "What's the 'The' in front for?"

"For dramatic effect," Arachne said sweetly, earning a pat on the head from The Rum Tum Tugger as well as a grin. "That's right," he confirmed.

"Oh…I see…," stated Sahara, still looking a bit confused. While she was trying to figure that whole deal out, Jemima caught sight of her paw and looked slightly concerned. "Hey, what happened?" she inquired.

"Hm? To what?" Sahara replied. Jemima gestured with a tilt of her head. "To your paw, of course!"

"Oh…OH, that! Oh, well, I-"

"Ooh, did you hurt yourself?" Etcetera asked worriedly.

"Well, no…" Sahara started, but she was cut off again, this time by Electra.

"Was it a Pollicle?"

"U-Um, no…" Sahara stammered, not quite used to all the attention. Arachne leaned her head down and looked at Sahara's paw carefully before asking, "Well, what DID happen? It's a weird-looking cut…"

Sahara pulled her paw back and shrugged, telling her story without much enthusiasm. "Well, me and Salome- that's my sister-…you see, we were trying to get some food, but this old human came out and threw a shoe at us and…well…," she looked down a little bit, "…I guess I got the worst of it." She was quiet for a split second before perking up a little bit. "It's not that bad, really!" she insisted.

"You should go see Jennyanydots! She can help make it better," squealed Arachne excitedly. Sahara glanced over at the black and grey kitten, quirking an eyebrow. "Jennyanydots…?"

"Yeah, my auntie Jenny!" Electra chimed in. Sahara thought for a few moments…'If this Jennyanydots can help me, then maybe…' "Where can I find her?" Sahara inquired to them all. It was The Rum Tum Tugger who answered this time. He had since relocated himself to a comfortable (and somewhat alluring) position on a pile of discarded newspapers and ancient textbooks.

"She's usually in the old Ford, next to the tire," he said coolly. Sahara glanced up at him, smiling just slightly. "Oh, thanks for the info…hm…but it's late. I don't want to wake anyone up…"

"That's okay, Sahara. We can take you there in the morning!" Jemima said cheerfully, making Sahara's smile grow a little more. "Thank you. I'd love that."

"Now, shouldn't you lovelies be getting some sleep?" The Rum Tum Tugger asked as he descended down from his temporary resting place, a smug grin still plastered on his handsome face. The kittens giggled again, settling down, in and around a washing machine (it was a clear, warm night, so they weren't too worried about rain and the like).

"You're right. I should really get back to Salome…" Sahara remarked as she glanced over her shoulder. "I'll see you all tomorrow! Goodnight!"

And with that, she turned and ran off into the calm darkness of the junkyard, ignoring the stinging in her paw for the moment. The kittens watched her go and The Rum Tum Tugger slipped off to his den. The young queens chatted among themselves.

"She's nice…" Arachne remarked.

"Yeah she is! What did Vicky say about her?" Jemima asked as she climbed into the washer. Little Electra was already falling asleep, but was still conscious enough to answer.

"She said that…,"she yawned, then resumed, "…that she and her sister are strays and…and that they wanted to stay for the Ball…"

"You think that they'll live here? You know, and not be strays anymore?" Etcetera inquired as she curled up against Arachne.

"Yeah…that would be nice…" Electra remarked as she gave one final yawn and drifted into her dreams. The other three soon followed suit and slept peacefully under the twinkling stars…

**(A/N: Yay! Chapter Two! Hee, I like this one. A little boring, but, IT'S MY STORY! Next time, a bit of comedic delights for ye lubbers! Until then, lovelies! Ta!)**


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